OT - Midco

[SW_Mustang]

Midco is scaling back their operations. I can't find any info on how this will impact the NSIC, but I have a feeling coverage will not be the same as it has been.

https://www.therinklive.com/mens-col...s-on-streaming

[Matt Witwicki]

I saw earlier on In-Forum (Fargo) that David Brown, Brian Shawn, and Jody Norstedt..along with others (not identified) were getting laid off due to budget cuts. It mentioned something about high school will longer be produced by Midco and some of their original programming would be eliminated.

These days Midco wasn't really covering the NSIC as a league for football anymore....but did cover the NSIC hoops tourney with outstanding coverage....along with Midco having a contract with Augie specifically for football, hoops, hockey. TBD if Midco will still cover the league tourney..or Augie for that matter.

David covered the league for years and did a really nice job with it. He and I became friends years ago and even did a preseason football podcast for the NSIC back in maybe 2016..? He's a very stand-up guy and I'm hoping to see that he finds something fitting for his talents.

[zimmy21]

I saw earlier on In-Forum (Fargo) that David Brown, Brian Shawn, and Jody Norstedt..along with others (not identified) were getting laid off due to budget cuts. It mentioned something about high school will longer be produced by Midco and some of their original programming would be eliminated.

These days Midco wasn't really covering the NSIC as a league for football anymore....but did cover the NSIC hoops tourney with outstanding coverage....along with Midco having a contract with Augie specifically for football, hoops, hockey. TBD if Midco will still cover the league tourney..or Augie for that matter.

David covered the league for years and did a really nice job with it. He and I became friends years ago and even did a preseason football podcast for the NSIC back in maybe 2016..? He's a very stand-up guy and I'm hoping to see that he finds something fitting for his talents.

What a shame...I was so jealous the Midco wasn't in my town and others were able to watch NSIC product on TV.

[zimmy21]

Wonder how this will affect the Summit? I believe they are the exclusive distributors for Summit games

[SW_Mustang]

Wonder how this will affect the Summit? I believe they are the exclusive distributors for Summit games

They are going to maintain current contracts with SDSU, USD, and UND, but I think those will move to streaming?

[zimmy21]

They are going to maintain current contracts with SDSU, USD, and UND, but I think those will move to streaming?

Oof this is going to be interesting to see.

[Tundra_Man]

I've wondered for a while how their Midco Sports Network channel was economically viable given the small number of viewers it has. I guess I got my answer: it wasn't.

[SW_Mustang]

Oof this is going to be interesting to see.

I guess I should backtrack - they said they are keeping those contracts and are going to focus on streaming - but if they aren't covering the NSIC with any sort of regularity, and they are dropping all HS content, it's not a stretch to assume that's what they mean. I guess we'll see.

[Matt Witwicki]

I'm seeing that plenty of other on-air personalities are being let go also. Jason Andera, Darron Wallace....but it would seem longtime face of Midco Jay Elsen will be retained....makes sense as USD has been a main focus for Midco for years now..and he's that guy

[Matt Witwicki]

Here's more..
https://www.keloland.com/news/local-...unces-layoffs/

[Stanger86]

I think a best-case situation that would come out of this for NSIC fans is if these guys are still brought back on a "seasonal" basis, essentially hired each year for the basketball season to still provide similar content. However, I absolutely understand that it's no way for those people to make a living and at the end of the day this sucks for these guys, and I don't expect them to take an offer like that.

What I personally expect is that this pushes the NSIC to return to "high seed hosts" basketball tournaments at some point. Midco was a big part of the push to move to Sioux Falls, and without that I think putting out a good quality broadcast is going to be more difficult if you're outsourcing announcers and broadcast crews.

[SW_Mustang]

I think a best-case situation that would come out of this for NSIC fans is if these guys are still brought back on a "seasonal" basis, essentially hired each year for the basketball season to still provide similar content. However, I absolutely understand that it's no way for those people to make a living and at the end of the day this sucks for these guys, and I don't expect them to take an offer like that.

I did read that they are open to working with the departed talent in a freelance situation, but who knows.

[Augieholic]

They are going to maintain current contracts with SDSU, USD, and UND, but I think those will move to streaming?

CBS Sports also started to scoop up more Summit League games this season including taking the Conference Championship from ESPN

[SW_Mustang]

CBS Sports also started to scoop up more Summit League games this season including taking the Conference Championship from ESPN

That's a good point. I did notice that with SDSU.

[SW_Mustang]

I saw earlier on In-Forum (Fargo) that David Brown, Brian Shawn, and Jody Norstedt..along with others (not identified) were getting laid off due to budget cuts. It mentioned something about high school will longer be produced by Midco and some of their original programming would be eliminated.

These days Midco wasn't really covering the NSIC as a league for football anymore....but did cover the NSIC hoops tourney with outstanding coverage....along with Midco having a contract with Augie specifically for football, hoops, hockey. TBD if Midco will still cover the league tourney..or Augie for that matter.

David covered the league for years and did a really nice job with it. He and I became friends years ago and even did a preseason football podcast for the NSIC back in maybe 2016..? He's a very stand-up guy and I'm hoping to see that he finds something fitting for his talents.

I remember he hosted a show on Midco that was a weekly recap of the NSIC football landscape. I watched it regularly after I moved to Marshall, and it really helped me get up to speed on the conference as I didn't have much knowledge prior to attending SMSU. There was a segment called "DB's Picks" where he'd highlight the top plays of the weekend which I also enjoyed.

IMO - I think he handled the NSIC with a sincerity that is probably pretty uncommon for a D2 conference, and he always made it feel like a big deal when other media outlets would treat D2 as an afterthought at best, circus show at worst. Not to mention he was always professional. His coverage of the NSIC basketball tournament was awesome. I'd say he was an asset to small school sports in the upper midwest. I mean - even his tweets before he made his announcement were about MSU basketball.

I also caught some of his Augie hockey coverage and I thought he did a great job. I remember the first time I went he was up in the second deck of the Denny calling the game with Pat Micheletti.

Sad to see things end this way for him, but I know he'll find something else down the line.